If the only sound you normally hear during yoga class is the instructor's voice and your own breathing, you might not even think to practice yoga to music—but at Laughing Lotus Yoga Center, every class is set to a playlist. "We're a vinyasa studio that's focused on creative sequencing and a lot of playfulness and joy in the classes," says Mary Dana Abbott, creative director and an instructor at Laughing Lotus. "The music helps carry the movement because it's so flow-y."

When Abbott's making playlists, she doesn't start with the first song. Instead, she likes to begin with what she calls a "peak" song: a song that has a high energy level and plays during the fastest-paced segment of the class. (That's not necessarily when the most difficult poses fall—for those, Abbott prefers songs without lyrics so they don't overpower the instruction.) Then she plans music that will play both before and after that "peak" song. For example, in the playlist below, which Abbott used in a recent class that focused on standing sequences, "Reflektor" is the "peak" song. Check it out: